Arkansas beat Boise State for their first win of 2002. An impressive day on the ground, 217 yards, coupled with seven Boise State turnovers, helped secure the Razorback victory.[2] A blocked punt, a passing TD and then a rushing TD put the Razorbacks off to a 21–0 advantage. After two field goals and a TD strike to Decori Birmingham, the Hogs were out to a 34–0 lead, but the Broncos got on the board twice to make it 34–14. A fake field goal gave the Hogs a first down before Jones hooked up with Richard Smith on an 18-yard touchdown pass that closed the scoring at 41–14.[2]

Thirty five first half points and 547 yards of total offense set the Razorbacks well on their way to their second win of the season, at the expense of the South Florida Bulls. Only a field goal with a minute left in the game kept the Razorbacks from having a shutout, which would have been their first in two years.[3] Back-up quarterback Tarvaris Jackson led a 94-yard scoring drive of his own, after three scoring drives by Matt Jones. Jackson would eventually transfer from Arkansas to Alabama A&M after Matt Jones became the apparent starting quarterback.[4] South Florida had eight consecutive wins, the second-longest win streak in the nation, coming into this contest.[3]

Both Santonio Beard and Shaud Williams went over 100 yards for Alabama as the Tide beat Arkansas 30–12 at home.[5] The Razorbacks never were within striking distance, as the Tide jumped out to a 14–0 lead, the first touchdown being an 80-yard scamper by Williams on the first play from scrimmage.[5] A Crimson Tide field goal and Matt Jones TD run pushed the score to 17–7, but the Razorbacks could not penetrate the end zone again, as the two teams swapped field goals.[5] A fourth quarter 50-yard touchdown pass from Brodie Croyle finished the Hogs, who tacked on an intentional safety to make the final 30–12.[5]

Jones struggled throwing the ball, going just 7-of-18 for 111 yards with two interceptions. The loss was only the fourth home loss under Houston Nutt.[5]

A six-overtime shootout was the result of the meeting between the Volunteers and the Razorbacks at Neyland Stadium in 2002. The battle-tested Razorbacks had come out victorious from a seven-overtime affair against Ole Missthe year previous.[6] This was the longest game in NCAA Division I-A (now FBS) history. Arkansas' success in (especially multiple) overtime situations provoked Coach Houston Nutt into being quoted as saying at the beginning of the first overtime: "This is our game. We're ready."[7] This overtime loss was the first for Arkansas in their football history.[8]

The game began relatively low-scoring, with the Volunteers holding a 17–3 lead for the majority of the game. Tennessee leading rusher Cedric Houston missed the game with a torn ligament in his left thumb. Arkansas had injury problems of its own, and became one-dimensional with Cedric Cobbs, the Hogs' starting running back, missing much of the second half with a turf toe injury.[7] The Razorbacks got the ball with ten minutes left in the fourth quarter and scored two touchdowns in a span of 4½ minutes. The tying touchdown was a 92-yard touchdown pass to Richard Smith from Matt Jones.[8] Said Jones of that play after the game, "The coaches have told us never to quit, and we were down seven at our own 8, I kept thinking about that."[7] This was at the time the longest offensive play in the history of Arkansas football, since surpassed by Broderick Green's 99-yard rush against Eastern Michigan in 2009.[9]

Both teams swapped field goals for the first two periods. The third was scoreless, despite an opportunity for Arkansas to shut the door with a field goal attempt.[8] Arkansas then scored on a Matt Jones run, but failed the two-point conversion, which is required versus an extra point in the third overtime or later. The Volunteers answered the call on their first play, a 25-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Tony Brown, but the Volunteers also failed the two, sending the game into a fifth extra period.[7]

Tennessee's Jabari Davis then ran into the end zone, but fumbled the ball as he crossed the plane of the goal line, but teammate and backfield mate Troy Fleming fell on the ball giving Rocky Top a six-point lead.[8]QuarterbackCasey Clausen was then sacked on the two point try. De'Arrius Howard ran in for the Hogs, but an interception by Tennessee's Julian Battle kept the game continuing to a sixth overtime.[7]
David Carlton kicked a 47-yard field goal for Arkansas in the sixth overtime, but future NFLAll-Protight endJason Witten caught a touchdown pass from Casey Clausen, ending the game in dramatic fashion, 41–38.[7]

Arkansas came out strong after their six overtime game with Tennessee. The Hogs Fred Talley rushed for 241 yards, 80 of those in one play, in a 38–17 upset of the Tigers at Auburn.[10] 241 yards remains to this day the most given up by an Auburn defense to a single rusher. Talley was a pleasant surprise fill-in for injured starter Cedric Cobbs. Talley lead the Hogs in a 426-yard rushing effort as a team. Talley had only 123 yards in the first four games of the year.[10] Fullback Mark Pierce also had a 44-yard run on a fourth-and-one, with Matt Jones adding a 70-yard touchdown scamper in the fourth quarter.[10]

Auburn seemed the more likely one for a big day on the ground with highly touted running back Carnell "Cadillac" Williams. A year previous Cadillac had his break-out game against Arkansas, moving him from third to first on the depth chart at the expense of the Razorbacks. Said Arkansas defensive tackle Jermaine Brooks on Williams, "We gave the Cadillac a flat tire" and, "we just got sick and tired of [hearing about Williams]. If you stop him, you stop Auburn."[10]

Arkansas' ground game continued to impress, with 293 yards, 182 of those from freshman Fred Talley. Overall, Arkansas had 515 yards of total offense to UK's 332. Quarterback Matt Jones set career marks with 15 completions and 210 yards.[11] None of this, was enough as Kentucky managed a 29–17 victory.

Kentucky drove the opening kickoff 40 yards and kicker Taylor Begley hit on a 50-yard field goal. Arkansas had their field goal blocked on the ensuing possession, but fullback Mark Pierce later rumbled for a 34-yard score for the Razorbacks.[11] An Arkansas field goal added to the lead to make it 10–3. Jared Lorenzen threw a touchdown pass right before halftime, but the extra point was blocked by Pervis Osborne of Arkansas. Arkansas held a one-point edge coming out of halftime when the Wildcats came out with a twenty-point scoring flurry.[11] First a Matt Jones interception gave the Wildcats good field position, setting up an Artose Pinner TD run. Then, an 86-yard punt return by Derek Abney gave Kentucky a 22–10 lead, following a missed extra point.[11] Razorback De'Arrius Howard scored from one yard out, but Jared Lorenzen hit Aaron Boone on a screen pass that went 18 yards to paydirt.[11] Arkansas had two red zone opportunities in the fourth quarter, but neither team could dent the scoreboard, and Kentucky won, 29–17.[11]

Arkansas ran for 257 yards, and Ole Miss QB Eli Manning threw for 414 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.[12] The first points of the game came for the Rebels when Matt Jones was called for intentionally grounding in the end zone, which by rule is scored a safety. Ole Miss gained a 2–0 lead, but fumbled near the close of the first quarter, resulting in a Razorback field goal. Lerinezo Robinson for the Hogs then returned a fumbled kickoff eight yards for a touchdown, giving Arkansas a 10–2 lead.[12] Jonathan Nichols of Ole Miss then hit a 48-yard field, but a Jimmy Beasley interception of Eli Manning set up Arkansas for a 34-yard option keep touchdown by Matt Jones, giving an edge to the Hogs, 17–5. Manning then connected with Justin Sawyer, but the two point play was no good. First a field goal, then a touchdown closed out the first half for the Razorbacks, the TD set up by a 55-yard punt return by Decori Birmingham, to the Ole Miss 20.[12]

The Rebels began the second half with 25-yard field goal. A 63-yard run by Fred Talley set up another Razorback touchdown, and Razorback Tom Crowder recovered the kickoff fumbled by Ole Miss in the end zone, to push the score to 41–14.[12] Manning completed a drive with a 20-yard touchdown pass, but with just over ten minutes left, it was too little to late. Each team then added another touchdown before the Razorbacks homecoming game went final, 48–28. The Razorbacks' outstanding ground game was helped out by five Rebels turnovers, which led to 24 Razorback points.[12]

The game was dominated by both defenses, despite a lopsided finish. Troy State's ninth-ranked defense held Arkansas under 150 total yards and six first downs.[13] Arkansas shut out their first opponent since blanking Southwest Missouri State 38–0 in 2000. Special teams stepped up for the Hogs, and two blocked punts, one recovered in the end zone, helped out a struggling offense.

Arkansas beat South Carolina at home as the Hogs won their second consecutive game by the count of 23–0. Matt Jones completed 10 of 18 passes for 113 yards and two scores. Defenders Gavin Walls, Eddie Jackson and Lawrence Richardson had interceptions that each lead to Arkansas points. All of these turnovers helped add to Arkansas' turnover margin of plus-1.88 per game.[14]

Arkansas won their fourth straight game and improved to 16–0 in non-conference play under Houston Nutt with this win. Matt Jones lead rushers with a season-high 129 yards, and the Razorbacks out gained the Ragin' Cajuns on the ground 263 yards to 61.[15] The Hog defense had held every opponent out of the end zone for nine quarters until a pass from Eric Rekieta to Fred Stamps late in the second quarter.[15] Future NFL cornerbackCharles Tillman recovered a blocked punt in the fourth quarter, which was the first time since 1991 the Hogs allowed a touchdown off a blocked punt.[15]

Arkansas went to Scott Field to play winless-in-the-SEC Mississippi State. The Razorbacks defense held on a fourth down play which saved the game. The Razorbacks ran for 237 yards, 121 of those from freshman tailback De'Arruis Howard. Fred Talley fell just short of his fourth 100-yard game as he ran for 94 yards. Mississippi State used two quarterbacks, Kevin Fant was 14-of-26 for 115 yards with an interception. Kyle York entered in the third quarter and went 11-of-22 for 174 yards with one interception and two TDs.

Bulldogs kicker Brent Smith scored the first points of the contest, but two Matt Jones touchdown passes put the Hogs up 14–3. Kevin Fant was sacked by Clarke Moore in the end zone to add two more points for Arkansas. David Carlton added a field goal, his fifth consecutive made field goal. Mississippi State added its own field goal, just before fullback Mark Pierce reached the end zone from five yards out. A comeback was engineered by replacement quarterback Kyle York for the Bulldogs, but it fell seven points short, 26–19.

Arkansas and LSU played in War Memorial Stadium for the Golden Boot, a gold trophy that resembles the two states of Arkansas and Louisiana, forming a boot. Arkansas clinched the SEC West crown with this win, moving the Razorbacks to 9–3 overall.[16]

With nine seconds left, Quarterback Matt Jones threw a 31-yard touchdown pass to Decori Birmingham, and kicker David Carlton made a long extra point to finish the Tigers off, 21–20.[17] Down 20–14 with 34 seconds remaining, the Razorbacks first play was a 50-yard pass to Richard Smith.[18] After an incompletion, Jones found Birmingham in the end zone, who outleaped Randall Gay for the catch. As Hog fans poured onto the field, Arkansas was then penalized 15 yards for excessive celebration, moving the go-ahead extra point to the 35-yard line.[17] Carlton's kick was long enough, but curved left and just snuck in the goal post for a 21–20 lead. Houston Nutt later said that when he was sharing with Jones the plays to run Jones simply said, despite completing only two passes up to that point, "I've got it."[17]

Arkansas represented the Western Division of the SEC in the SEC Championship game in 2002. Arkansas was down 17–0 to Georgia before they gained one yard in the contest, giving the conference title to the Bulldogs. With the loss, Arkansas had only scored six points in two SEC title game appearances, while in contrast, Razorback opponents have scored 64 points against them. Arkansas would make a much better showing their next time in Atlanta, but fail to win again in the 2006 SEC Championship Game against the Florida Gators.

Arkansas got off on the wrong foot as punter Richie Butler's punt was blocked, setting up a one-yard touchdown run for Georgia running back Musa Smith. Another run by Smith pushed the Bulldog advantage to 14–0. Three Georgia field goals added to the score to make it 23–0. Arkansas had only one scoring drive, but even that was on life support, kept alive by two personal fouls, one after an incompletion on 3rd and 23. Georgia added a touchdown, won the game 30–3, and with the victory won the Southeastern Conference.

Coach Houston Nutt said after the game, "I felt like they were playing with 12 men, they have few weaknesses."

Minnesota kicker Dan Nystrom made five field goals as the Golden Gophers upset Arkansas in the Music City Bowl.[19] Nystrom was named the MVP, a rarity for a kicker.[19] Nystrom could have had a sixth attempt, but Minnesota instead went for a first down on a fourth and five and was denied with 2:46 remaining in the game.

Arkansas, the best rushing team in the SEC, had only eighty yards on the ground.[19] This was well below their average of 226.9 yards per game. A halftime pass caught by Smith in the end zone would have given Arkansas a halftime lead, but Smith was declared out of bounds, and the score was nullified.[19] The Razorback defense, ranked 40th best in the nation, bent but did not break. The Gophers were stopped and had to settle for field goals three times inside the Arkansas 7.[19]

Arkansas native Matt Jones was the signal caller for the Razorbacks in 2002. Jones also played basketball on the Razorback basketball team. Jones currently holds the SEC record for most rushing yards by a quarterback, but with the advent of the Spread offense in college football, and new dynamic players in the SEC, his record is in danger of being broken.

1.
Arkansas Razorbacks football
–
The Arkansas Razorbacks football program represents the University of Arkansas, located in Fayetteville, Arkansas, in the sport of American football. The Razorbacks compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the program has 13 conference championships,45 All-Americans, and an all-time record of 700–475–40. The Razorbacks are the 23rd-most successful team in football history by number of wins. Home games are played at locations near the two largest campuses of the University of Arkansas System, Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville, the Arkansas Razorbacks have 84 active NFL players currently in the 2015 NFL Season. The first University of Arkansas football team was formed in 1894 and coached by John Futrall and that team played three games, two against Fort Smith High School and one against Texas. Before the 1909 season, the teams was called the Arkansas Cardinals, the name and mascot changed following the 1909 season when the football team, coached by Hugo Bezdek, finished 7–0. Arkansas prevailed over powerhouses Oklahoma, LSU and Washington of St. Louis in 1909 and it was with the help of Steve Creekmore that this was accomplished. Creekmore became perhaps the first Razorback star, a quarterback from Van Buren who initially played only intramurals, Bezdek used Creekmore to install a very early edition of the hurry-up offense, as the team never huddled and chased the ball after every play. Creekmore was also known for fast and slippery running, blocking, there are differing stories about the origins of the Razorbacks mascot, however. The Texarkana Arkansas High School mascot and athletic emblem is the Razorback with red, the Razorback mascot was selected in 1910 to replace the Cardinal as the University of Arkansas mascot. In exchange for its use, the university provided used athletic gear to Texarkana Arkansas High, this practice is no longer used. With the new name and mascot, the Hogs defeated LSU 51–0 and gave Texas A&M their only loss in 1910, in 1913, Arkansas quarterback J. L. Carter and the Razorbacks lost to Ole Miss, and took a fateful train to Arkadelphia to play Ouachita Baptist. While Carter was eating, he was invited to a meeting of Ouachita boosters and he transferred and defeated Arkansas 15–9 in 1914. The Hogs would be contacted by L. Theo Bellmont in 1913 in his attempt to create a conference to regulate use of ringers. Hugo Bezdek, since replaced by E. T. Pickering, had recommended that the Hogs join a conference before he left to coach at Oregon, the Razorbacks joined the Southwest Conference as charter members in 1915. The conference also included teams from Texas and Oklahoma, southwestern would also join, but leave the following year. The 1916,1917, and 1919 teams were led at quarterback by Arkansas greatest athlete Gene Davidson, the Razorbacks didnt have a winning conference record until 1920, and didnt win the conference championship until 1936. Arkansas had the best record during the 1933 season, but had to forfeit the SWC Championship because Ulysses Heine Schleuter, Schleuter had told coach Fred Thomsen that he was eligible, but he was recognized by an SMU player during the game as a former Cornhusker

2.
2002 SEC Championship Game
–
The 2002 SEC Championship Game was won by the Georgia Bulldogs 30-3 over the Arkansas Razorbacks. The game was played in the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia on December 7,2002 and was televised to an audience on CBS. The 2002 championship game was unusual in the fact that team in first place in the Western Division did not play in the game. Instead, the Arkansas Razorbacks who finished in a three way tie for second represented the Western Division after winning the tie breaker over Auburn and this was not the first time the SEC West leader was excluded from the game. Auburn also finished atop the West in 1993, but was banned from post season play as well by NCAA probation

3.
Southeastern Conference
–
The Southeastern Conference is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the Southern part of the United States. Its fourteen members include the public universities of ten states. The conference is headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, the SEC participates in the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I in sports competitions, for football, it is part of the Football Bowl Subdivision, formerly known as Division I-A. The SEC was also the first NCAA Division I conference to hold a game for college football and was one of the founding members of the Bowl Championship Series. The current SEC commissioner is Greg Sankey, the conference sponsors team championships in nine mens sports and twelve womens sports. The SEC consists of 14 member institutions located within the borders of 11 contiguous states and these divisional groupings are applied exclusively to football and baseball as well as their scheduling and standings. The other charter members were, The University of the South left the SEC on December 13,1940 and it is currently a member of the Division III Southern Athletic Association. Georgia Institute of Technology left the SEC in 1964, in 1975, it became a founding member of the Metro Conference, one of the predecessors to todays Conference USA. Georgia Tech competed in the Metro Conference in all sports except football, in 1978, Georgia Tech joined another Southern Conference offshoot, the Atlantic Coast Conference, for all sports, where it has remained ever since. Tulane University left the SEC in 1966, along with Georgia Tech, it was a charter member of the Metro Conference. Unlike Tech, however, Tulane remained in the Metro Conference until it merged with the Great Midwest Conference in 1995 to form Conference USA, Tulane remained an independent in football until C-USA began football competition in 1996. Tulane left C-USA in 2014 for the American Athletic Conference, in 1990, the SEC expanded from ten to twelve member universities with the addition of the Arkansas Razorbacks and the South Carolina Gamecocks. The two new members began SEC competition with the 1991–1992 basketball season, at the same time, the SEC organized competition for some sports into two divisions. Initially, the format was used in football, baseball. The divisional format was dropped for mens basketball following the 2011–2012 season, the 1992 and 1993 championship games were held at Legion Field in Birmingham, and all championship games from 1994 onward have been held at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. On November 6,2011 the SEC commissioner announced that the University of Missouri would also join the SEC on July 1,2012, for football, Texas A&M was scheduled to compete in the Western Division, and Missouri in the Eastern Division. Texas A&M and Missouri both left the Big 12 Conference, the office of Commissioner was created in 1940. Under the leadership of Michael F, the SECU rebranded its mission to better serve as a means through which the collaborative academic endeavors and achievements of Southeastern Conference universities would be promoted and advanced

4.
Houston Nutt
–
Houston Dale Nutt, Jr. is a former American football coach and former player. He currently works for CBS Sports as a college football studio analyst, previously, he served as the head football coach at Murray State University, Boise State University, the University of Arkansas, and University of Mississippi. Nutts all-time career winning percentage is just under 59 percent and he previously served as an assistant coach under Lou Holtz and Jack Crowe. Houston Nutt, Jr. was born in Arkansas and he is the son of the late Houston Dale Nutt, Sr. and Emogene Nutt and is the oldest of four children. Houston Nutt, Sr. briefly played basketball for the University of Kentucky under Adolph Rupp before transferring to Oklahoma A&M in 1952, Nutt graduated from Little Rock Central High School. His parents taught at the Arkansas School for the Deaf at Little Rock and his father also served as athletic director and head basketball coach for the school. His father was inducted into the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame in 2001, during his childhood, Houston and his brothers were daily members at the Billy Mitchell Boys and Girls Club in Little Rock. Wife Diana, like Nutt, graduated from Oklahoma State University, the couple have four children together, Houston III, twins Hailey and Hanna, and Haven. Nutts brother Dickey Nutt was the basketball coach at Arkansas State University until he announced his resignation on February 19,2008. He now coaches basketball at Southeast Missouri State University and his brother Danny Nutt served as the Assistant Athletics Director for Player Development at Ole Miss during Houstons tenure as head coach. Nutts youngest brother Dennis Nutt, a former NBA player, is head basketball coach at Ouachita Baptist University. Nutt was the last player recruited by Arkansas head coach Frank Broyles before his retirement in 1976, Nutt was recruited as a drop-back style quarterback and started four games as a true freshman after starting quarterback Ron Calcagni was sidelined with an injury. Nutt also played that year for the Southwest Conference champion Arkansas basketball team under coach Eddie Sutton, with the retirement of Broyles, Arkansas hired Lou Holtz as the head football coach. Holtz established an option offense that did not make use of Nutts passing style, disappointed by his lack of playing time, Nutt transferred to Oklahoma State University and played two years as a backup quarterback. During his time at Oklahoma State he also played for the basketball team, Nutt graduated from Oklahoma State in 1981 with a degree in physical education. After graduation, Nutt became an assistant for Oklahoma State under head coach Jimmy Johnson. In 1983, Nutt returned to Arkansas and became an assistant coach under former coach Lou Holtz. Nutt spent six seasons as an assistant coach for receivers and quarterbacks at Oklahoma State and was promoted to offensive coordinator in 1989, during his years at Oklahoma State, he helped mentor running back Barry Sanders, who won the 1988 Heisman Trophy and Buffalo Bills legend Thurman Thomas

5.
Razorback Stadium
–
The stadium was formerly known as Razorback Stadium since 1941 before being renamed in 2001 in honor of Donald W. Reynolds, an American businessman and philanthropist. The playing field in the stadium is named the Frank Broyles Field, honoring former Arkansas head football coach, Razorback Stadium increased the seating capacity from 50,019 to 72,000 during the 2000-2001 renovations. Before 1938, the Razorbacks played in a 300-seat stadium built in 1901 on land on top of The Hill, which is now occupied by Mullins Library and the Fine Arts Center. The new stadium cost approximately $492,000 and was funded by the Works Progress Administration, the stadium opened for the 1938 football season as University Stadium, holding a capacity of 13,500 spectators. In the home opener for the Razorbacks, the Razorbacks defeated Oklahoma A&M by a score of 27–7 on September 24,1938. The following week, Arkansas dedicated the stadium to then sitting Arkansas Governor Carl E. Bailey on October 3,1938, following Governor Baileys defeat in the 1940 gubernatorial election to Homer Martin Adkins, the stadiums name was changed in 1941 to Razorback Stadium. Broyles awarded the contract to Heery International with local support from the Wittenberg, DeLoney. The renovation was funded by the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation. What was then the largest LED display in a sports venue, the expansion was completed before the beginning of the 2001 football season, increasing the permanent seating capacity to 72,000 from its previous capacity of 51,000 seats. 4,000 bleacher seats were added in the end zone upper deck bringing capacity to just over 76,000 with the new expansion. In honor of the Reynolds Foundations generosity, the stadium was formally renamed Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium on September 8,2001, where Arkansas lost to Tennessee by a score of 13–3. On November 3,2007, the date of the last Fayetteville home game of the 2007 football season, a major renovation to the stadium was proposed in 2011 by Athletic Director Jeff Long, unveiling the plans to enclose the north end zone. The proposed renovation is estimated at $78 million to $95 million, a new upgrade to the stadium for the 2012 season increased the size to 38 by 167 feet, from the previous LED screen size of 30 by 107 feet. The upgrade was contracted through LSI Industries, since 1948, home games were divided between two venues, Razorback Stadium and War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock, Arkansas. Athletic director Frank Broyles wanted to move all games to Razorback Stadium to help pay off the $30 million bond that was to be used for expanding and renovating the stadium in 1999. Broyles pointed out that the expanded Razorback Stadium would increase revenue to $3 million per game compared to the $2 million per game for playing at War Memorial Stadium. However, Little Rock investors did not like the idea of moving all home games to Fayetteville and countered with an offer to renovate, also, Little Rock investor Warren Stephens threatened to discontinue his familys support for the program if games were pulled from Little Rock. After listening to both Chuck Neinas and Stephens in January 2000, the University of Arkansas Board of Trustees voted 9-1 to sign a contract with the owners of War Memorial Stadium

6.
War Memorial Stadium (Arkansas)
–
War Memorial Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Little Rock, Arkansas. The Arkansas State University Red Wolves have in the past played a few games there, War Memorial Stadium finished construction in 1947 and had a seating capacity of 31,075. On September 19,1948, the stadium was dedicated by former Arkansas Razorback. Britt dedicated the stadium to the memory of her native sons, following the dedication ceremony, the first game at the stadium commenced, where the Arkansas Razorbacks defeated the Abilene Christian Wildcats by a score of 40–6. War Memorial Stadium has added numerous improvements to the stadium and to the playing field, a complete lighting system and an Astroturf surface were installed for the 1970 season. A new artificial surface was installed in 1974 and also prior to the 1984 season. Artificial turf was reinstalled prior to the 2002 season when AstroPlay was installed, a new scoreboard and video screen were added prior to the 2005 football season and the field was later upgraded to field turf in 2006. Renovations to the facility and press box began on December 14,2009. The renovations cost approximately $7.3 million and was completed in August 2010, AT&T signed a sponsorship agreement with the War Memorial Stadium Commission to name the playing field AT&T Field on June 23,2010. The naming rights of the field last for at least five years with an option for a 10-year agreement. With this agreement, War Memorial Stadium will earn $175,000 per year for the first five years with a 2. 5% annual increase after the five years. In addition to athletics, the stadium has used for a variety of other purposes including musical concerts. In 1995, Billy Joel and Elton John performed to a crowd of 41,274. Other artists who had performed at the stadium are The Eagles, The Rolling Stones, George Strait, reverend Billy Graham conducted his evangelistic crusades to thousands of listeners at the stadium that included a young Bill Clinton in 1959. Graham returned to the stadium in 1989, months prior to the 1956 collegiate football season, the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics began searching for cities to host the inaugural NAIA championship game. As it appeared that the game was headed to Shreveport, Louisiana. This would cause the NAIA to look for another city to host the game because some of their member colleges had African-American athletes. War Memorial Stadium general manager Allen Berry had already begun to get local business to support for the game and the Little Rock Chamber of Commerce raised $25,000 to back the game

7.
2002 Florida Gators football team
–
The 2002 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida in the sport of American football during the 2002 college football season. They were led by head coach Ron Zook, who coached them to a second-place finish in the SEC East, an Outback Bowl berth. Sources,2012 Florida Football Media Guide, and GatorZone. com,2012 Florida Football Media Guide, University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida, pp. 107–116. Carlson, Norm, University of Florida Football Vault, The History of the Florida Gators, Whitman Publishing, LLC, Atlanta, an Oral History of Floridas Pursuit of Gridiron Glory, Legends Publishing, LLC, St. Petersburg, Florida. Hairston, Jack, Tales from the Gator Swamp, A Collection of the Greatest Gator Stories Ever Told, Sports Publishing, LLC, Champaign, Illinois

8.
2002 Tennessee Volunteers football team
–
The 2002 Tennessee Volunteers football team represented the University of Tennessee in the 2002 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by Phillip Fulmer, the Vols played their home games in Neyland Stadium and competed in the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference. The Vols finished the season 8–5, 5–3 in SEC play and lost the Peach Bowl, 30–3, the following UT players were selected

9.
2002 Kentucky Wildcats football team
–
The 2002 Kentucky Wildcats football team represented the University of Kentucky in the 2002 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Wildcats scored 385 points while allowing 301 points, though finishing with a 7–5 record, the Wildcats were not bowl eligible due to NCAA sanctions resulting from the tenure of former head coach Hal Mumme. Kentucky opened with a 22–17 win at #17 Louisville, a nationally broadcast upset in which Kentucky reclaimed the Governors Cup, a 77–17 win over UTEP followed, and wins against Indiana and Middle Tennessee State put Kentucky at 4–0. A 41–34 loss at #7 Florida was followed by a 16–12 loss to South Carolina that came down to the final play, a 29–17 win at Arkansas followed. A 52–24 loss to #5 Georgia was followed by a 45–24 win at Mississippi State, a 33–30 loss to #16 LSU on the games final play was followed by a 41–21 win against Vanderbilt and a 24–0 loss at Tennessee

10.
2002 Auburn Tigers football team
–
The 2002 Auburn Tigers football team represented Auburn University in the 2002 NCAA Division I-A football season. Auburn, led by head coach Tommy Tuberville, finished with record of 9–4, following a disappointing 7–5 finish the previous season, the coaching staff of the 2002 Tigers featured two prominent new members. Bobby Petrino was hired as the new coordinator, and Gene Chizik joined the staff as the Tigers new defensive coordinator. The Tigers finished the season ranked #14 in the AP Poll and #16 in the Coaches Poll

11.
SEC Championship Game
–
The SEC Championship Game is an annual American football game that has determined the Southeastern Conferences season champion since 1992. The championship game pits the SEC Western Division regular season champion against the Eastern Division regular season champion and it is typically played on the first Saturday of December. Ten of the fourteen current SEC members have played in the SEC Championship Game, kentucky and Vanderbilt have yet to reach the game from the East, while Ole Miss and Texas A&M have yet to reach the game from the West. The overall series between both divisions is led by the Western Division, 14–11. While ten SEC members have played in the game, only six have won, Florida, Georgia, and Tennessee of the Eastern Division, and Alabama, Auburn, each of these teams has won the championship multiple times. Alabama is the current SEC champion, since 2007, the game is held the first Saturday of December at 4,00 PM Eastern. The SEC was the first NCAA conference in any division to hold a championship game that was exempt from NCAA limits on regular-season contests. Such a game was possible by two separate developments. The format has since adopted by other conferences to decide their football champion. The first two SEC Championship Games were held at Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama, from 1994 until 2016, the game has been played at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. With the Georgia Dome scheduled to be demolished after the 2016 season, the game will be played at the new stadium through 2027. And at least one of two teams has qualified for the game in 14 of 25 seasons. The only other matchup in the SEC Championship played more than twice is Georgia and LSU, Alabama has faced Florida in nine of their eleven SEC Championship Game appearances. In addition, the 2009 game marked the second year that the No.1. 2009 was the first time any conference championship game had featured two undefeated teams, Alabama won 32–13 and earned a berth in the 2010 BCS National Championship Game, which it went on to win as well. Auburn and Missouri met in the 2013 SEC Championship Game, Auburn won the game 59–42, breaking the previous record of 56 points for most points scored by a single team in the SEC Championship Game. In recent years, the game has been nicknamed the national semi-final for college football, the 2008,2009, and 2012 games were essentially national semi-final games, as both participating teams were virtually guaranteed a berth in the BCS national championship game with a win. The 2013 game was not thought of as such at the time of the game, between 2006 and 2013 the winner of the SEC Championship Game went on to play in the BCS National Championship Game eight straight years, posting a 6-2 record in the game

12.
University of Arkansas
–
The University of Arkansas is a public, co-educational, land-grant, space-grant, research university in Fayetteville, in the U. S. state of Arkansas. More than 26,000 students are enrolled in over 188 undergraduate, graduate and it is classified by the Carnegie Foundation as a research university with highest research activity. Founded as Arkansas Industrial University in 1871, its present name was adopted in 1899 and it is noted for its strong architecture, agriculture, business, communication disorders, creative writing, history, law, and Middle Eastern studies programs. Enrollment for the semester of 2014 was 26,237. Academic programs are in excess of 200, the ratio of students to faculty is approximately 19,1. The University of Arkansas was founded in 1871 on the site of a farm that overlooked the Ozark Mountains. The university was established under the Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act of 1862, the universitys founding also satisfied the provision in the Arkansas Constitution of 1868 that the General Assembly was to establish and maintain a State University. Bids from state towns and counties determined the universitys location, the citizens of Fayetteville and Washington County. Pledged $130,000 toward securing the university, a sum that proved to be more than other offers, classes started on January 22,1872. Completed in 1875, Old Main, a brick building designed in the Second Empire style, was the primary instructional. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and its design was based on the plans for the main academic building at the University of Illinois, which has since been demolished. However, the clock and bell towers were switched at Arkansas, the northern taller tower is the bell tower, and the southern shorter tower is the clock tower. One legend for the switch is that the taller tower was put to the north as a reminder of the Union victory during the Civil War. A second legend is that the contractor accidentally swapped the tower drawings after having had too much to drink, although the southern tower was designed with clock faces, it never held a working clock until October 2005. The bell tower has always had some type of chime, initially a bell that was rung on the hour by student volunteers, electronic chimes were installed in 1959. In addition to the chimes of the clock, the universitys Alma Mater plays at 5 pm every day. Old Main housed many of the earliest classes at the university, the lawn at Old Main serves as an arboretum, with many of the trees native to the state of Arkansas found on the lawn. Sitting at the edge of the lawn is Spoofers Stone, a place for couples to meet, students play soccer, cricket and touch football on the lawns open green

13.
2002 NCAA Division I-A football season
–
The 2002 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with a double overtime national championship game. Ohio State and Miami both came into the Fiesta Bowl undefeated, the underdog Buckeyes defeated the defending-champion Hurricanes 31–24, ending Miamis 34-game winning streak. Jim Tressel won the championship in only his second year as head coach. Rose Bowl officials were upset over the loss of the Big Ten champ from the game. Former New England Patriots coach Pete Carroll returned the USC Trojans to a BCS bid in only his second season as head coach, Notre Dame also returned to prominence, as Tyrone Willingham became the first coach in Notre Dame history to win 10 games in his first season. Flagrant personal fouls committed during possession by the defense in overtime will be carried over to the extra period. Previously, those fouls were disregarded but the player committing the foul was ejected from the game, all players are required to wear facemasks of the same color. Penalties committed during a play can now either be enforced on the PAT or the ensuing kickoff. No teams upgraded from Division I-AA, leaving the number of Division I-A schools fixed at 117, the only conference move during this season saw the University of Central Florida leave the Independent ranks to join the Mid-American Conference as its 14th member. The Rose Bowl normally features the champions of the Big Ten, after the national championship was set, the Orange Bowl had the next pick, and invited #3 Iowa from the Big Ten. When it was the Rose Bowls turn to select, the best available team was #8 Oklahoma, when it came time for the Orange Bowl and Sugar Bowl to make a second pick, both wanted Pac-10 co-champion USC. However, a BCS rule stated that if two bowls wanted the team, the bowl with the higher payoff had priority. The Orange Bowl immediately extended a bid to the #5 Trojans. The Rose Bowl was left to pair Oklahoma with Pac-10 co-champion Washington State, Rose Bowl committee executive director Mitch Dorger was not pleased with the results. As such, the BCS instituted a new rule, whereby a bowl losing its conference champion to the BCS championship could protect the team from that conference from going to another bowl. This left the Sugar Bowl with #14 BCS Florida State, the winner of the Atlantic Coast Conference, Notre Dame at 10-2 and #9 in the BCS standings was invited to the 2003 Gator Bowl. Kansas State at #8 also was left out, larry Johnson, RB, Penn State 4. J. Henderson, Maryland Lombardi Award, Terrell Suggs, Arizona State Outland Trophy, Rien Long, Washington State Dick Butkus, E. J

14.
Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium
–
The stadium was formerly known as Razorback Stadium since 1941 before being renamed in 2001 in honor of Donald W. Reynolds, an American businessman and philanthropist. The playing field in the stadium is named the Frank Broyles Field, honoring former Arkansas head football coach, Razorback Stadium increased the seating capacity from 50,019 to 72,000 during the 2000-2001 renovations. Before 1938, the Razorbacks played in a 300-seat stadium built in 1901 on land on top of The Hill, which is now occupied by Mullins Library and the Fine Arts Center. The new stadium cost approximately $492,000 and was funded by the Works Progress Administration, the stadium opened for the 1938 football season as University Stadium, holding a capacity of 13,500 spectators. In the home opener for the Razorbacks, the Razorbacks defeated Oklahoma A&M by a score of 27–7 on September 24,1938. The following week, Arkansas dedicated the stadium to then sitting Arkansas Governor Carl E. Bailey on October 3,1938, following Governor Baileys defeat in the 1940 gubernatorial election to Homer Martin Adkins, the stadiums name was changed in 1941 to Razorback Stadium. Broyles awarded the contract to Heery International with local support from the Wittenberg, DeLoney. The renovation was funded by the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation. What was then the largest LED display in a sports venue, the expansion was completed before the beginning of the 2001 football season, increasing the permanent seating capacity to 72,000 from its previous capacity of 51,000 seats. 4,000 bleacher seats were added in the end zone upper deck bringing capacity to just over 76,000 with the new expansion. In honor of the Reynolds Foundations generosity, the stadium was formally renamed Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium on September 8,2001, where Arkansas lost to Tennessee by a score of 13–3. On November 3,2007, the date of the last Fayetteville home game of the 2007 football season, a major renovation to the stadium was proposed in 2011 by Athletic Director Jeff Long, unveiling the plans to enclose the north end zone. The proposed renovation is estimated at $78 million to $95 million, a new upgrade to the stadium for the 2012 season increased the size to 38 by 167 feet, from the previous LED screen size of 30 by 107 feet. The upgrade was contracted through LSI Industries, since 1948, home games were divided between two venues, Razorback Stadium and War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock, Arkansas. Athletic director Frank Broyles wanted to move all games to Razorback Stadium to help pay off the $30 million bond that was to be used for expanding and renovating the stadium in 1999. Broyles pointed out that the expanded Razorback Stadium would increase revenue to $3 million per game compared to the $2 million per game for playing at War Memorial Stadium. However, Little Rock investors did not like the idea of moving all home games to Fayetteville and countered with an offer to renovate, also, Little Rock investor Warren Stephens threatened to discontinue his familys support for the program if games were pulled from Little Rock. After listening to both Chuck Neinas and Stephens in January 2000, the University of Arkansas Board of Trustees voted 9-1 to sign a contract with the owners of War Memorial Stadium

15.
Fayetteville, Arkansas
–
Fayetteville is the third-largest city in Arkansas and county seat of Washington County. The city is located within the county and has been home of the University of Arkansas since the institutions founding in 1871. Fayetteville is on the outskirts of the Boston Mountains, deep within the Ozarks, known as Washington until 1829, the city was named after Fayetteville, Tennessee, from which many of the settlers had come. It was incorporated on November 3,1836 and was rechartered in 1867, the four-county Northwest Arkansas Metropolitan Statistical Area is ranked 105th in terms of population in the United States with 463,204 in 2010 according to the United States Census Bureau. The city had a population of 73,580 at the 2010 Census, at 1,400 feet of elevation, it is also one of the highest major US cites between the western Great Plains and the Appalachian Mountains. Fayetteville is home to the University of Arkansas, the states largest university, when classes are in session, thousands of students on campus dramatically change the citys demographics. Thousands of Arkansas Razorbacks alumni and fans travel to Fayetteville to attend football, basketball, the Universitys mens track and field program has won 41 national championships to date. Forbes also ranked Fayetteville as the 24th-best city for business and careers in 2016, lonely Planet named Fayetteville among its top 20 places to visit in the South in 2016. Based in nearby Bentonville, the Walmart corporation has dominated Fayettevilles economy, the city hosts the Wal-Mart Shareholders Meetings each year at the Bud Walton Arena. In 1828, George McGarrah settled at Big Spring with his family on the modern day corner of Spring and Willow, founding the town of Washington, on October 17, Washington County was established, Washington chosen as the county seat. The Washington Courthouse was finished in 1829, and also contained the post office, later in the year Postmaster Larkin Newton changed the name to the Fayetteville Courthouse, to avoid confusing with Washington, Hempstead County. Two councilmen selected to name the city were from Fayetteville, Tennessee and that original Fayetteville was named for General Lafayette, a French general who helped the colonies gain independence in the American Revolutionary War. The first store in Fayetteville was opened by John Nye in a building constructed by James Holmsley. In 1832 David Walker, Chief Justice of the Arkansas supreme court, in 1822 Archibald Yell, the second Governor of Arkansas, built a house and called it Waxhaw after his home in North Carolina. This was on the outskirts of town then but now is a named after him that connects College. The first hotels were the Burnside House and the Onstott House, Fayetteville was incorporated as a town on November 3,1836. In 1859, a city charter was obtained from the Legislature, during the Civil War the municipal government was suspended and was not reinstated until 1867. Rhea was the president of the trustees in 1836, J. W. Walker was the first mayor under the charter of 1859

16.
Little Rock, Arkansas
–
Little Rock is the capital and the most populous city of the U. S. state of Arkansas. It is also the county seat of Pulaski County and it was incorporated on November 7,1831, on the south bank of the Arkansas River close to the geographic center of the state. The city derives its name from a rock formation along the river, the capital of the Arkansas Territory was moved to Little Rock from Arkansas Post in 1821. The citys population was 193,524 at the 2010 census, Little Rock is a cultural, economic, government, and transportation center within Arkansas and the South. Little Rocks history is available through history museums, historic districts or neighborhoods like the Quapaw Quarter, the city is the headquarters of Dillards, Windstream Communications, Acxiom, Stephens Inc. University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Heifer International, the Clinton Foundation, other large corporations, such as Dassault Falcon Jet and LM Wind Power have large operations in the city. State government is an employer, with many offices being located in downtown Little Rock. Two Interstate highways, Interstate 30 and Interstate 40, meet in Little Rock, Little Rock derives its name from a small rock formation on the south bank of the Arkansas River called le petit rocher. The little rock was used by river traffic as a landmark. The little rock is across the river from big rock, a bluff at the edge of the river. Archeological artifacts provide evidence of Native Americans inhabiting Central Arkansas for thousands of years before Europeans arrived, the early inhabitants may have been the Folsom people, Bluff Dwellers, and Mississippian culture peoples who built earthwork mounds recorded in 1541 by Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto. Historical tribes of the area were the Caddo, Quapaw, Osage, Choctaw, Little Rock was named for a stone outcropping on the bank of the Arkansas River used by early travelers as a landmark. Le Petit Rocher, named in 1722 by French explorer and trader Jean-Baptiste Bénard de la Harpe, Travelers referred to the area as the Little Rock, and the landmark name stuck. Little Rock is located at 34°44′10″N 92°19′52″W, according to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 116.8 square miles, of which,116.2 square miles of it is land and 0.6 square miles of it is water. Little Rock is located on the bank of the Arkansas River in Central Arkansas. Fourche Creek and Rock Creek run through the city, and flow into the river, the western part of the city is located in the foothills of the Ouachita Mountains. Northwest of the city limits are Pinnacle Mountain and Lake Maumelle, the city of North Little Rock is located just across the river from Little Rock, but it is a separate city. North Little Rock was once the 8th ward of Little Rock, an Arkansas Supreme Court decision on February 6,1904, allowed the ward to merge with the neighboring town of North Little Rock

17.
ESPN
–
ESPN is a U. S. -based global cable and satellite sports television channel owned by ESPN Inc. a joint venture between The Walt Disney Company and the Hearst Corporation. ESPN broadcasts primarily from studio facilities located in Bristol, Connecticut, the network also operates offices in Miami, New York City, Seattle, Charlotte, and Los Angeles. John Skipper currently serves as president of ESPN, a position he has held since January 1,2012, as of February 2015, ESPN is available to approximately 94,396,000 paid television households in the United States. In 2011, ESPNs history and rise was chronicled by These Guys Have All the Fun, Bill Rasmussen conceived the concept of ESPN in late May 1978, after he was fired from his job with the World Hockey Associations New England Whalers. One of the first steps in Bill and his son Scotts process was finding land to build the channels broadcasting facilities, the Rasmussens first rented office space in Plainville, Connecticut. However, the plan to base ESPN there was put on hold because a local ordinance prohibiting buildings from bearing rooftop satellite dishes and this helped the credibility of the fledgling company, however there were still many doubters to the viability of their sports channel concept. ESPN launched on September 7,1979, beginning with the first telecast of what would become the flagship program. Taped in front of a live audience inside the Bristol studios. ESPNs next big break came when the acquired the rights to broadcast coverage of the early rounds of the NCAA Mens Division I Basketball Tournament. It first aired the NCAA tournament in March 1980, creating the modern day television event known as March Madness. The channels tournament coverage also launched the career of Dick Vitale. In April of that year, ESPN created another made-for-TV spectacle, the next major stepping stone for ESPN came over the course of a couple of months in 1984. During this time period, the American Broadcasting Company purchased 100% of ESPN from the Rasmussens, for years, the NFL, NBA and Major League Baseball refused to consider cable as a means of broadcasting some of their games. However, with the backing of ABC, ESPNs ability to compete for major sports contracts greatly increased, later in 1984, the U. S. ESPNs Sunday Night Football games would become the highest-rated NFL telecasts for the next 17 years. In 1992, ESPN launched ESPN Radio, a sports talk radio network providing analysis. It became the fastest growing cable channel in the U. S. during the 1990s, ownership of ABC, and in effect control of ESPN, was acquired first by Capital Cities Communications in 1985, and then by The Walt Disney Company in 1996. In 2012, ESPN generated more revenue for Disney than any of its other properties combined, alongside its live sports broadcasts, ESPN also airs a variety of sports highlight, talk, and documentary-styled shows. 30 for 30 started airing in 2009 and continues airing to this day, each episode is through the eyes of a well known filmmaker and has featured some of the biggest directors in Hollywood

18.
Neyland Stadium
–
Neyland Stadium is a sports stadium in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States. It serves primarily as the home of the Tennessee Volunteers football team, the stadiums official capacity is 102,455. Neyland Stadium is the fifth largest stadium in the United States, the sixth largest stadium in the world, the stadium is named for Robert Neyland, who served three stints as head football coach at the University of Tennessee between 1926 and 1952. The Tennessee Volunteers football team played at Baldwin Park, which was once located between Grand Avenue and Dale Avenue, north of Fort Sanders. From 1909 to 1920, the played at Wait Field. The stadium was first conceived in 1919, colonel W. S. Shields, president of Knoxvilles City National Bank and a University of Tennessee trustee, provided the initial capital to prepare and equip an athletic field. At the groups behest, students and faculty finished the field over a two-day period, an invitational track meet was then held as a celebration and thus became the very first event at Neyland Stadium. The first UT football game at the stadium took place on September 24,1921, with the Vols defeating Emory & Henry, the first night game at Neyland Stadium was played on September 16,1972, with the Vols defeating Penn State, 28–21. In 1962, the stadium was renamed Neyland Stadium in honor of General Robert Neyland, the playing field continued to be named Shields-Watkins field. Neyland, the man credited with making the Vols a national power, coached the team from 1926–1952. Reflecting the Vols growth in stature, the stadiums capacity jumped more than 14-fold during his 38-year association with UT as either an assistant coach, head coach, or athletic director. By comparison, when it had originally built in 1921, it was not even a fraction the size of Tennessees largest football stadium at the time. Shortly before his death, he spearheaded the stadiums first major expansion, the plans he drafted were so far ahead of their time that they have formed the basis for every expansion since then. The playing surface is still named Shields–Watkins Field, the latest additions and updates to the facility were part of a $136.4 million series of renovations, beginning in 2004 and completed by 2010. In a Spring 2001 poll in The Sporting News, Neyland Stadium was ranked as the nations #1 college football stadium, in 2004, Sports Illustrated ranked Neyland Stadium, the University of Tennessee campus, and the surrounding Knoxville area, as the best college football weekend experience. On April 8,2009, it was announced that Neyland Stadium was one of the 70 stadiums named for the United States bid to either the 2018 or 2022 World Cup, attendance has been recorded for Tennessee Volunteer football games at Neyland Stadium since 1946. Average attendance since that year has been 68,925 fans per game, the largest crowd ever recorded at Neyland Stadium was 109,061 on September 18,2004, when Tennessee defeated Florida, 30–28. Tennessee set a record by averaging 107,595 fans per home game in 2000

19.
Knoxville, Tennessee
–
Knoxville is a city in the U. S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Knox County. The city had an population of 185,291 in 2015. Knoxville is the city of the Knoxville Metropolitan Statistical Area. The KMSA is, in turn, the component of the Knoxville-Sevierville-La Follette Combined Statistical Area. First settled in 1786, Knoxville was the first capital of Tennessee, the city struggled with geographic isolation throughout the early 19th century. The arrival of the railroad in 1855 led to an economic boom, during the Civil War, the city was bitterly divided over the secession issue, and was occupied alternately by both Confederate and Union armies. Following the war, Knoxville grew rapidly as a wholesaling and manufacturing center. The citys economy stagnated after the 1920s as the manufacturing sector collapsed, Knoxville is the home of the flagship campus of the University of Tennessee, whose sports teams, called the Volunteers or Vols, are extremely popular in the surrounding area. The first people to form settlements in what is now Knoxville arrived during the Woodland period. One of the oldest artificial structures in Knoxville is a burial mound constructed during the early Mississippian culture period, the earthwork mound is now surrounded by the University of Tennessee campus. By the 18th century, the Cherokee had become the dominant tribe in the East Tennessee region, although they were consistently at war with the Creek, the Cherokee people called the Knoxville area kuwandatalunyi, which means Mulberry Place. Most Cherokee habitation in the area was concentrated in the Overhill settlements along the Little Tennessee River, the first Euro-American traders and explorers were recorded as arriving in the Tennessee Valley in the late 17th century. There is significant evidence that Hernando de Soto visited Bussell Island in 1540, the end of the French and Indian War and confusion brought about by the American Revolution led to a drastic increase in Euro-American settlement west of the Appalachians. By the 1780s, Euro-American settlers were established in the Holston. The U. S. Congress ordered all illegal settlers out of the valley in 1785, as settlers continued to trickle into Cherokee lands, tensions between the settlers and the Cherokee rose steadily. In 1786, James White, a Revolutionary War officer, and his friend James Connor built Whites Fort near the mouth of First Creek, on land White had purchased three years earlier. In 1790, Whites son-in-law, Charles McClung—who had arrived from Pennsylvania the previous year—surveyed Whites holdings between First Creek and Second Creek for the establishment of a town, mcClung drew up 640. 5-acre lots. The waterfront was set aside for a town common, two lots were set aside for a church and graveyard

20.
Auburn, Alabama
–
Auburn is a city in Lee County, Alabama, United States. It is the largest city in eastern Alabama with a 2015 population of 62,059 and it is a principal city of the Auburn-Opelika Metropolitan Area. Auburn is a town and is the home of Auburn University. It is Alabamas fastest-growing metropolitan area and the nineteenth fastest-growing metro area in the United States since 1990, U. S. News ranked Auburn among its top ten list of best places to live in the United States for the year 2009. The citys unofficial nickname is “The Loveliest Village On The Plains, ” taken from a line in the poem The Deserted Village by Oliver Goldsmith, inhabited in antiquity by the Creek, the land on which Auburn sits was opened to settlement in 1832 with the Treaty of Cusseta. The first settlers arrived in the winter of 1836 from Harris County and these settlers, led by Judge John J. Harper, intended to build a town that would be the religious and educational center for the area. Auburn was incorporated on February 2,1839, in what was then Macon County, by that time, Methodist and Baptist churches had been established, and a school had been built and had come into operation. In the mid-1840s, separate academies for boys and girls were established in addition to the primary school and this concentration of educational institutions led to a rapid influx of families from the planter class into Auburn in the 1840s and 1850s. By 1858, of the roughly 1,000 free residents of Auburn, in 1856, the state legislature chartered a Methodist college, the East Alabama Male College in Auburn. This college, now Auburn University, opened its doors in 1859, with the advent of the Civil War in 1861, Auburn quickly emptied. All of the closed, and most businesses shuttered. Auburn was the site of a hospital for Texan Confederate soldiers, after the Civil War, Auburn’s economy entered a prolonged depression that would last the remainder of the century. Public schools did not reopen until the mid-1870s, and most businesses remained closed, a series of fires in the 1860s and 1870s gutted the downtown area. Passage of the Hatch Act in 1887 allowed for expansion of research facilities on campus. In 1892, the became the first four-year college in Alabama to admit women. This, combined with increased interest in agriculture and engineering and new funding from business licenses. By 1910, Auburns population had returned to its antebellum level, SIAA Conference championships won by the Auburn college’s football team brought attention and support to Auburn, and helped fill the citys coffers. Fortunes were quickly reversed with the collapse of prices in the early 1920s

21.
Raycom Sports
–
Raycom Sports is an American syndicator of sports television programs. It is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, and owned and operated by Raycom Media and it was founded in 1979 by husband and wife, Rick and Dee Ray. Since its inception, it has produced and distributed football and basketball games from the Atlantic Coast Conference of the NCAA and it was also a distributor of games from the Southeastern, Big Eight, and Big Ten conferences, as well as the now-defunct Southwest Conference. In August 2019, Raycom Sports will officially stop its syndicated broadcasts of ACC college football and basketball seasons as the Conference, Rick Ray was a program manager at WCCB in Charlotte when he proposed that WCCB produce more basketball games. Ray thought that they would be profitable for WCCB, given North Carolinas reputation as a college basketball hotbed. However, station management turned him down, not long after setting up shop, Ray put together an early-season basketball tournament which became the Great Alaska Shootout. Two years later, Raycom made what would prove to be its biggest splash when it teamed up with Jefferson-Pilot Communications to take production of ACC basketball games. The package had begun in 1957 when Greensboro businessman C. D. Chesley piped North Carolinas run to the 1957 national title to a hastily created network of five stations across North Carolina. It proved popular enough that it expanded to a package of basketball games the following season. Chesley retained the rights to ACC games until 1980, when the conference bought him out and sold the rights to MetroSports of Rockville, some ACC games were telecast by Raycom alone in 1980 through four or five television stations in North Carolina, including WCCB. For the 1980-81 season, the two formed a joint venture, Raycom/JP Sports, that won the package after the ACC turned down Metrosports bid to renew its contract. From 1983 to 1986, Raycom and JP offered a package called Season Ticket. As a result of the purchase, Jefferson-Pilot Communications was renamed Lincoln Financial Media, starting in 2004, the same partnership took over production of syndicated ACC football games, Jefferson-Pilot had produced ACC football alone since September 1984. In 2007, Raycom began broadcasting the ACC mens basketball tournament in HDTV, in 2002, Raycom also founded the Continental Tire Bowl in Charlotte. It continued to operate the game, which changed its name to the Meineke Car Care Bowl, until 2011. Unlike other sports syndicators, Raycom controlled nearly all advertising for the broadcast, while this was a risky strategy at first, Raycom reaped a huge windfall since ACC games frequently garnered ratings in the 20s and 30s. By a happy coincidence, the ACCs regional territory included several fast-growing markets such as Charlotte, the Piedmont Triad, Jefferson-Pilot Sports produced syndicated Southeastern Conference basketball games from 1987 to 2006, and SEC football games from 1992 to 2006. The rights also included parts of the SEC Mens Basketball Tournament, Raycom was the sole owner of the broadcast rights for ACC mens basketball and syndicated ACC football through 2010–2011

22.
Troy Trojans football
–
The Troy Trojans football program represents Troy University in Troy, Alabama, in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision, formerly known as Division I-A, of which it has been a member since 2001. The current head coach of the team is Neal Brown, the football program joined the Sun Belt Conference in 2004, while the other Troy athletic programs didnt join the SBC until 2005. Troy University has fielded a football team continuously since 1946, prior to that year, the team was fielded with a lot of interruptions from 1909 to 1942. Eight years were skipped due to lack of participation and later World War I from 1913–1920, Coach George Penton led the Troy Trojans for two seasons,1911 and 1912. Under his tutelage, the Trojans completed their undefeated season. Albert Elmore began coaching in 1931 at the Troy and he is credited with changing the team mascot to Red Wave. Elmore left Troy after the 1937 season, in seven years at Troy State, five of which were winning seasons, Elmore compiled a 35–30–3 record. In 1947, Fred McCollum took the coaching position at Troy State. From 1947 to 1950, he compiled an record of twenty wins, eighteen losses. On January 8,1966, Bill Atkins was named the coach of the Troy State Trojans football team. In 1968, he coached Troy State to an NAIA National Championship and was named the NAIA Coach of the Year, Atkins finished at Troy State with a 44–16–2 record before leaving in 1971. He is the second-most winningest coach in Troy history, only behind Larry Blakeney, tom Jones was hired as Troy States head coach in 1972. He served as the football coach from 1972 to 1973. Byrd Whigham led the Troy Trojans football program for two seasons and his teams compiled a 12–8 record in his two seasons and he departed the Red Ware after the 1975 season. Former Kentucky head coach Charlie Bradshaw came out of retirement to accept the position of coach of the Trojans. Under Bradshaws tutelage, the Trojans compiled a 41–27–2 record, which included three seasons and one conference championship. However, a 3–7 campaign in 1981 and a 2–8 season in 1982 ended Bradshaws tenure at Troy State. In 1983, Chan Gailey took over the coaching duties at Troy State

23.
Williams-Brice Stadium
–
Williams-Brice Stadium is the home football stadium for the South Carolina Gamecocks, the college football team representing the University of South Carolina in Columbia, South Carolina. It is currently the 20th largest college stadium in the NCAA and is located on the corner of George Rogers Boulevard. Carolina football teams consistently attract standing-room-only crowds to Williams-Brice Stadium and it hosted the annual Palmetto Capital City Classic between Benedict College and Johnson C. Smith University until the last game in 2005. The stadium was built in 1934 with help of federal Works Progress Administration funds as Columbia Municipal Stadium. It originally seated 17,600 people in what roughly corresponds to the level of the current facilitys east and west grandstand seats. In 1941, the stadium was deeded to USC and renamed Carolina Stadium, One end of the stadium was filled in during the 1940s, turning it into a horseshoe. Capacity was almost doubled, to 34,000, More than a decade later, the other end was filled in, turning the stadium into a bowl. The stadiums first major renovation began in 1970, when the surface was replaced with AstroTurf. From 1971 to 1972, the west grandstand was completely rebuilt, the renovation was funded by the estate of Martha Williams and Howard Brice, who left some of their estate to USC for stadium renovation and expansion. Her late husband, Thomas H. Brice, played football for the Gamecocks from 1922 to 1924, in their honor, the expanded stadium was officially renamed Williams-Brice Stadium on September 8,1972 by a bequeath from their nephews Tom and Phil Edwards. In 1982, the east grandstands were finally double-decked, increasing capacity to 72,400, however, unlike the west grandstand, the east grandstand was never rebuilt, and is the only remaining portion of the original 1934 structure. During the 1983–84 offseason, at the urging of new coach Joe Morrison, over the last 10 years, nearly $30 million of renovations and improvements have taken place at Williams-Brice Stadium, bringing the official capacity to 80,250. The addition of the deck in the south end zone includes The Zone. The box seats, executive suites, and athletic training facilities at the stadium have also been upgraded, just prior to the 2008 football season the stadium underwent a complete upgrade to the main sound system. During this upgrade the added a large array of subwoofers under the scoreboard to enhance the feel of their entrance music. Installation of this system was done by local Columbia company ACS Sound, for the 2008 season, the stadium was 17th in average attendance and 13th in total attendance. On October 6,2012, the stadiums attendance record was set when 85,199 fans watched the #6 Gamecocks beat #5 Georgia by the score of 35–7. The stadium is considered one of the loudest venues in the country, during a game against Florida in 2001, ESPN announcers indicated that they had to shout to hear each others comments inside the pressbox

24.
Columbia, South Carolina
–
Columbia is the capital and largest city of the U. S. state of South Carolina, with a population of 133,803 as of 2015. The city serves as the county seat of Richland County, the name Columbia is a poetic term used for the United States, originating from the name of Christopher Columbus. The city is located approximately 13 miles northwest of the center of South Carolina. It lies at the confluence of the Saluda River and the Broad River, in 1860, the city was the location of the South Carolina Secession Convention, which marked the departure of the first state from the Union in the events leading up to the Civil War. At the time of European encounter, the inhabitants of the area that became Columbia were a people called the Congaree, in May 1540, a Spanish expedition led by Hernando de Soto traversed what is now Columbia while moving northward. The expedition produced the earliest written records of the area. From the creation of Columbia by the South Carolina General Assembly in 1786, the Congarees, a frontier fort on the west bank of the Congaree River, was the head of navigation in the Santee River system. A ferry was established by the government in 1754 to connect the fort with the growing settlements on the higher ground on the east bank. Like many other significant early settlements in colonial America, Columbia is on the line from the Piedmont region. The fall line is the spot where a river becomes unnavigable when sailing upstream, State Senator John Lewis Gervais of the town of Ninety Six introduced a bill that was approved by the legislature on March 22,1786, to create a new state capital. There was considerable argument over the name for the new city, according to published accounts, Senator Gervais said he hoped that in this town we should find refuge under the wings of COLUMBIA, for that was the name which he wished it to be called. One legislator insisted on the name Washington, but Columbia won by a vote of 11–7 in the state senate, the site was chosen as the new state capital in 1786, due to its central location in the state. The State Legislature first met there in 1790, after remaining under the direct government of the legislature for the first two decades of its existence, Columbia was incorporated as a village in 1805 and then as a city in 1854. Columbia received a stimulus to development when it was connected in a direct water route to Charleston by the Santee Canal. This canal connected the Santee and Cooper rivers in a 22-mile-long section and it was first chartered in 1786 and completed in 1800, making it one of the earliest canals in the United States. With increased railroad traffic, it ceased operation around 1850, the commissioners designed a town of 400 blocks in a 2-mile square along the river. The blocks were divided into lots of 0.5 acres and sold to speculators, buyers had to build a house at least 30 feet long and 18 feet wide within three years or face an annual 5% penalty. The perimeter streets and two streets were 150 feet wide

25.
Davis Wade Stadium
–
It serves as the home venue for the Mississippi State Bulldogs football team. As of 2016, it has a capacity of 61,337 people. The stadium was built in 1914, as a replacement for Hardy Field, the first game it hosted was a Mississippi State win over Marion Military Institute, 54-0, on Oct.3,1914. In 1920 the student body adopted a resolution to name the field Scott Field in honor of Don Magruder Scott, the playing surface retained the name Scott Field and the official name of the facility is Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field. In 1928 permanent seating for 3,000 was built on the west side—the lower level of the current facilitys west grandstand, in addition, there were portable stands with a similar capacity bringing the seating total to around 6,000. In 1936, with the use of WPA labor, concrete stands seating 8,000 people were added to the west sidelines and steel bleachers were built on the east sideline and this brought the total capacity to 20,000. In 1983, the end zone seating was removed, reducing the capacity to 32,000, the Frank Turman Fieldhouse received an additional floor to its facility in 1990. Named Leo W. Seal M-Club Centre in honor of Leo W. Seal, Sr. a 2-year letter winner at State, it is a place for the letterman organization. The expansion was completed in 2002 bringing the capacity to 55,082, including 50 skyboxes,1,700 club-level seats. In the fall of 2008 construction was completed on an all-new $6.1 million 112 ft wide by 48 ft tall high-definition video display board in the end zone above the Leo Seal M-Club Center. The LED video system is the tenth largest high-definition video board in college football, the new board was used for the first time on November 1,2008, during the Mississippi State Bulldogs vs. Kentucky Wildcats football game. Therefore, the video board square footage is 6,896 sq. ft. To complement the video system, a new state-of-the-art sound system has been installed by Pro Sound, headquartered in Miami. A $75 million expansion, completed in August 2014, increased the capacity of the stadium to 61,337, created new concessions and restrooms, and created a new west side concourse. The Junction, located on the side of the stadium, is a grassy park where Bulldog fans tailgate under tents during sports weekends. It is named The Junction for the railroad ran through the tailgating area in the campus past. It also replaced Malfunction Junction, a set of adjacent intersections where 6 different streets converged on campus, the streets were rerouted around the area and a pedestrian park was built on the site. The Junction has been referred to as the “premier tailgate experience” by the Birmingham-based firm contracted for its design, the Dawg Walk is held approximately 3 hours before each home game

26.
Starkville, Mississippi
–
Starkville is a city in and the county seat of Oktibbeha County, Mississippi, United States. The Starkville Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Oktibbeha County, the population was 23,888 at the 2010 census. Starkville is an anchor of the Golden Triangle region of northeast Mississippi which consists of Starkville, Columbus, the campus of Mississippi State University is located adjacent to and partially within the east of Starkville. As of the fall of 2011, MSU has over 20,000 undergraduate students, more than 4,000 graduate students, the university is the largest employer in Starkville. Students have created an audience for the Magnolia Film Festival. Held every February, it is the oldest film festival in the state, the Starkville area has been inhabited for over 2100 years. The village site can be accessed from the Indian Mound Campground, the earthwork mounds were made by early Native Americans of moundbuilder cultures as part of their religious and political cosmology. Shortly before the American Revolutionary War period, the area was inhabited by the Choccuma tribe and they were annihilated about that time by a rare alliance between the Choctaw and Chickasaw peoples. Most of the Native Americans of the Southeast were forced west of the Mississippi River during the 1830s, White settlers were drawn to the Starkville area because of two large springs, which Native Americans had used for thousands of years. A mill on the Big Black River southwest of town produced clapboards, giving the town its original name, in 1835, when Boardtown was established as the county seat of Oktibbeha County, it was renamed as Starkville in honor of Revolutionary War hero General John Stark. On March 21,2006, Starkville became the first city in Mississippi to adopt a ban for indoor public places, including restaurants. This ordinance went into effect on May 20,2006, Starkville is located at 33°27′45″N 88°49′12″W. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of 25.8 square miles. US Highway 82 and Mississippi Highways 12 and 25 are major roads through Starkville, the nearest airport with scheduled service is Golden Triangle Regional Airport. George M. Bryan Field serves as Starkvilles general aviation airport, there are multiple privately owned airstrips in the area. As of the census of 2010, there were 23,888 people,9,845 households, the population density was 936.4 people per square mile. There were 11,767 housing units at a density of 396. 7/sq mi. The racial makeup of the city was 58. 5% Non-Hispanic White,34. 06% African American,0. 2% Native American,3. 75% Asian,0. 1% Pacific Islander,0. 64% from other races, and 1. 3% from two or more races

27.
SEC on CBS
–
CBS has been a television partner with the SEC since 1996, when the network returned to carrying regular-season college football on a weekly basis during the season. Televised games featuring teams outside the Southeastern Conference are branded as College Football on CBS, CBS was reduced to airing the Cotton Bowl Classic, which it had aired since 1958. It added the Sun Bowl in 1968, which remains on CBS to this day as of 2016, from 1974 to 1977, it also aired the Fiesta Bowl, and from 1978 to 1986 it carried the Peach Bowl. For the 1982 season, CBS was made a partner in the NCAA contract. CBS broadcast games from major conference, as well as the games of the then major independents such as Penn State, Notre Dame. As required by the NCAA, the network also televised Division I-AA, II and III games to very small audiences, giving such as The Citadel. The pregame show was titled The NCAA Today in the vein of its pro football counterpart The NFL Today, both shows were hosted by Brent Musburger. However, for the NCAA pregame show, Pat OBrien and Ara Parseghian were the analysts/feature reporters, gary Bender was the lead play-by-play announcer for game coverage, working with analysts such as Pat Haden and Steve Davis. Other CBS game commentators were Verne Lundquist, Lindsey Nelson, Frank Herzog, Jack Snow and this arrangement was in place during the 1982 and 1983 seasons. In 1984, after the U. S. Supreme Court invalidated the NCAA contract in NCAA v. However, the Big Ten and Pac-10 conferences were not included in this package, and signed their own agreement with CBS. Miami also reached an agreement for CBS to televise its most important home games, and in 1985, in 1985, Musburger took over the role of lead play-by-play voice, with Parseghian moving to the booth with him. Jim Nantz succeeded Musburger as studio host, in 1987, CBS took over the CFA contract, which it would hold until 1990. For 1987 and 1988, Pat Haden joined Musburger in the booth, with John Dockery manning the sidelines, Verne Lundquist, Tim Brant, Dick Stockton, Steve Zabriskie and Brad Nessler also called games for CBS during the CFA period. In 1989, Nantz became lead play-by-play announcer, but Haden remained the lead analyst for that year, after 1990, ABC obtained exclusive network coverage of regular season college football, as it won back the CFA and retained the Pac-10/Big Ten rights. As the 1990s began, CBS Division I-A college football coverage was reduced to its bowl game contracts, which it had with the then-John Hancock, Cotton and the then-Blockbuster bowls. However, it lost the rights to the Cotton Bowl to NBC after the 1992 game, CBS televised Major League Baseball from 1990 to 1993, so as a result the network was not without major sports coverage on Saturdays during the fall after the loss of college football. In 1994 and 1995, CBS did not have any major sports coverage in the fall. Under the terms of the contract, which ran from 1995 through 1997, CBS aired the Fiesta Bowl and Orange Bowl, CBS was the first network to air a Bowl Alliance national championship game, as Nebraska defeated Florida in the 1996 Fiesta Bowl

28.
Georgia Dome
–
The Georgia Dome was a domed stadium located in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, between downtown to the east and Vine City to the west. It was owned and operated by the State of Georgia as part of the Georgia World Congress Center Authority and it was primarily the home stadium for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League and the Georgia State Panthers football team from Georgia State University. Also, it has hosted the Peach Bowl from 1992 until 2016, in addition, the Georgia Dome has also hosted several soccer matches since 2009 that have drawn over 50,000 fans. The Dome was accessible by rail via MARTAs Blue and Green lines, in 1992, the Georgia Dome was completed at a cost of $214 million, which came from the Georgia General Assembly, making it one of the largest state-funded construction projects in Georgia history. For most Georgia State football games, the dome was configured with 28,155 seats, with tickets for only the bulk of the lower level, the record for overall attendance at the Georgia Dome is 80,892 for the 2008 SEC Championship Game in football. The dome was the largest cable-supported dome in the world and its roof was made of teflon-coated fiberglass fabric and had an area of 374,584.08 square feet. From its completion until the December 31,1999 opening of the 20-acre Millennium Dome in London, the Georgia Dome originally used AstroTurf artificial surface for its football events. In 2003, Arthur Blank, the new owner of Atlanta Falcons, in 2006, the Atlanta Falcons and the Georgia World Congress Center Authority announced a $300 million renovation to the Georgia Dome. The project was separated into two stages, the first stage, which took place before the 2007 NFL season, focused on updating the premium seating areas, including the creation of eight super-suites as well as an owners club. The entrance gates and concourses were also renovated and updated before the 2008 football season, in 2009, the video screens in both endzones were relocated to a new exterior monument sign on Northside Drive. The interior endzones each received a new and considerably wider High Definition video screen that significantly enhances views of replays, as well as graphics, a new sound system was installed in the same year, replacing the previous system that was nearly 20 years old. Three years after the completion of the Dome, the integrity of its roof became an issue. During a Falcons pre-season game in August 1995, a rainstorm caused water to pool on the fabric, tearing part of the material. The collapse occurred after fans left the stadium, and no one was injured during the incident, the roof was eventually repaired in a way that prevented similar incidents from occurring in the future. The quarterfinal game to follow between the Kentucky Wildcats and Georgia Bulldogs was postponed until the following day, the resulting damage forced the rest of the tournament to be moved to the Alexander Memorial Coliseum, now known as Hank McCamish Pavilion, at Georgia Tech. The Falcons final football game in the Dome was the 2016 NFC Championship Game on January 22,2017, the stadiums final public event took place on March 4 and 5,2017 with back-to-back Monster Jam events. Salvage operations and interior demolition will take place throughout the spring, the Georgia Dome site will become greenspace for tailgating at Mercedes-Benz Stadium and other community events, a 600-car parking garage and a convention center hotel is also planned for the site. The stadium also hosted Super Bowl XXVIII in 1994 and Super Bowl XXXIV in 2000, the new incarnation of Turner Field is now tentatively known as Georgia State Stadium

29.
Atlanta
–
Atlanta is the capital of and the most populous city in the U. S. state of Georgia, with an estimated 2015 population of 463,878. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, home to 5,710,795 people, Atlanta is the county seat of Fulton County, and a small portion of the city extends eastward into DeKalb County. In 1837, Atlanta was founded at the intersection of two lines, and the city rose from the ashes of the American Civil War to become a national center of commerce. Atlantas economy is considered diverse, with dominant sectors that include logistics, professional and business services, media operations, Atlanta has topographic features that include rolling hills and dense tree coverage. Revitalization of Atlantas neighborhoods, initially spurred by the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, has intensified in the 21st century, altering the demographics, politics. Prior to the arrival of European settlers in north Georgia, Creek Indians inhabited the area, standing Peachtree, a Creek village located where Peachtree Creek flows into the Chattahoochee River, was the closest Indian settlement to what is now Atlanta. As part of the removal of Native Americans from northern Georgia from 1802 to 1825, the Creek ceded the area in 1821. In 1836, the Georgia General Assembly voted to build the Western, the initial route was to run southward from Chattanooga to a terminus east of the Chattahoochee River, which would then be linked to Savannah. After engineers surveyed various possible locations for the terminus, the zero milepost was driven into the ground in what is now Five Points. A year later, the area around the milepost had developed into a settlement, first known as Terminus, and later as Thrasherville after a merchant who built homes. By 1842, the town had six buildings and 30 residents and was renamed Marthasville to honor the Governors daughter, later, J. Edgar Thomson, Chief Engineer of the Georgia Railroad, suggested the town be renamed Atlantica-Pacifica, which was shortened to Atlanta. The residents approved, and the town was incorporated as Atlanta on December 29,1847, by 1860, Atlantas population had grown to 9,554. During the American Civil War, the nexus of multiple railroads in Atlanta made the city a hub for the distribution of military supplies, in 1864, the Union Army moved southward following the capture of Chattanooga and began its invasion of north Georgia. On the next day, Mayor James Calhoun surrendered Atlanta to the Union Army, on November 11,1864, Sherman prepared for the Union Armys March to the Sea by ordering Atlanta to be burned to the ground, sparing only the citys churches and hospitals. After the Civil War ended in 1865, Atlanta was gradually rebuilt, due to the citys superior rail transportation network, the state capital was moved from Milledgeville to Atlanta in 1868. In the 1880 Census, Atlanta surpassed Savannah as Georgias largest city, by 1885, the founding of the Georgia School of Technology and the citys black colleges had established Atlanta as a center for higher education. In 1895, Atlanta hosted the Cotton States and International Exposition, during the first decades of the 20th century, Atlanta experienced a period of unprecedented growth. In three decades time, Atlantas population tripled as the city expanded to include nearby streetcar suburbs

30.
Nissan Stadium
–
Nissan Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Nashville, Tennessee, United States, owned by the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County. It is primarily used for football and is the field of the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League. The stadium is also the site of the Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl, a college football bowl game played each December. Nissan Stadium is used for concerts, such as the CMA Music Festival nightly concerts which take place for four days every June. Facilities are included to enable the stadium to host other events, meetings, parties. Nissan Stadium is located on the east bank of the Cumberland River and its first event was a preseason game between the Titans and the Atlanta Falcons on August 27,1999. Since opening in 1999 it has been known by names, including Adelphia Coliseum from 1999 to 2002, The Coliseum from 2002 to 2006. The stadium features three levels of seating, with the lower bowl completely encompassing the field, the club and upper levels form the stadiums dual towers, rising above the lower bowl along each sideline. All of the luxury suites are located within the towers. Three levels of suites are located in the eastern tower. The western tower has two levels of suites, both between the club and upper levels. The pressbox is located between the lower and club levels in the western tower, Nissan Stadiums dual videoboards are located behind the lower bowl in each end zone. The playing surface of Nissan Stadium is Tifsport Bermuda Sod, a natural grass, on Nissan Stadiums eastern side is the Titans Pro Shop, a retail store which sells team merchandise. It remains open year-round and maintains an entrance for use on non-event dates. During the 1995 NFL Preseason, the Houston Oilers faced the Washington Redskins in a game at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville. Later that fall, Adams and Bredesen announced the intent to move to Nashville. The city and team decided to locate a stadium on the bank of the Cumberland River in downtown Nashville. In a special referendum on May 7,1996, voters in Metropolitan Nashville/Davidson County voted to approve partial funding of the proposed stadium, the vote, which allocated US$144 million of public money to the project, passed with a 59% majority

31.
Nashville, Tennessee
–
Nashville is the capital of the U. S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in the central part of the state. The city is a center for the music, healthcare, publishing, banking and transportation industries and it is known as a center of the country music industry, earning it the nickname Music City, U. S. A. Since 1963, Nashville has had a consolidated city-county government which includes six municipalities in a two-tier system. Nashville is governed by a mayor, vice-mayor, and 40-member Metropolitan Council, thirty-five of the members are elected from single-member districts, five are elected at-large. Reflecting the citys position in government, Nashville is home to the Tennessee Supreme Courts courthouse for Middle Tennessee. According to 2015 estimates from the U. S. Census Bureau, the balance population, which excludes semi-independent municipalities within Nashville, was 654,610. The 2015 population of the entire 13-county Nashville metropolitan area was 1,830,345, the 2015 population of the Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Columbia combined statistical area, a larger trade area, was 1,951,644. The town of Nashville was founded by James Robertson, John Donelson, and it was named for Francis Nash, the American Revolutionary War hero. Nashville quickly grew because of its location, accessibility as a port on the Cumberland River, a tributary of the Ohio River. By 1800, the city had 345 residents, including 136 African American slaves and 14 free blacks, in 1806, Nashville was incorporated as a city and became the county seat of Davidson County, Tennessee. In 1843, the city was named the permanent capital of the state of Tennessee, by 1860, when the first rumblings of secession began to be heard across the South, antebellum Nashville was a prosperous city. The citys significance as a port made it a desirable prize as a means of controlling important river. In February 1862, Nashville became the first state capital to fall to Union troops, the state was occupied by Union troops for the duration of the war. Within a few years after the Civil War, the Nashville chapter of the Ku Klux Klan was founded by Confederate veteran John W. Morton, meanwhile, the city had reclaimed its important shipping and trading position and developed a solid manufacturing base. The post–Civil War years of the late 19th century brought new prosperity to Nashville and these healthy economic times left the city with a legacy of grand classical-style buildings, which can still be seen around the downtown area. Circa 1950 the state approved a new city charter that provided for the election of city council members from single-member districts. This change was supported because at-large voting diluted the minority populations political power in the city and they could seldom gain a majority of the population to support a candidate of their choice